CCA Congratulates and Welcomes the New Fellows Class of 2021!

CCA welcomes 12 new Fellows in 2021. Learn more about them below. Click here to see their official introductions at the CCA 21st Annual Meeting.

Gail A. Andler served as a former California Superior Court judge in Orange County for 22 years, including ten years on the Complex Civil Case Panel. She joined JAMS in 2017. She is a past President of the American College of Business Court Judges. She is very active in the Business Law Section of the ABA, including serving as Chair of the Women Business and Commercial Advocates Committee. Judge Andler is a graduate of the University of California, Los Angeles, and received her J.D. from Loyola Law School.

Chiann Bao is based in Singapore and Hong Kong and has held several very prestigious positions in the international arbitration community, including Secretary General of the Hong Kong International Centre, Vice President of the ICC Court of Arbitration, and Chair of the ICC Commission Task Force on Arbitration and ADR. Ms. Bao is a graduate of Cornell University and received her J.D. from the University of Wisconsin Law School. She also has a LLMArbDR from the City University of Hong Kong School of Law.

Karl Bayer is based in Austin, Texas and has extensive experience as a court master on patent, health care financing, discovery, and pre-trial disputes. He served as Chair of the Admissions and Disciplinary Committee for the U.S, District Court, Western District of Texas, and is an Adjunct Professor at the University of Texas Law School. Mr. Bayer graduated from Rice University with a degree in electrical engineering, received a master’s degree from MIT in biomedical engineering, and his J.D. from the University of Texas School of Law.

George A. Bermann is a professor at Columbia Law School and the Director of its Center for International Commercial and Investment Arbitration. He has served as the Chief Reporter for the ALI Restatement of the U.S. Law of International Commercial Arbitration, was Chair of the Global Board of Advisors for the New York International Arbitration Center, was a Founding Member of the Governing Board of the ICC’s International Court of Arbitration, and has served as a Council Member for the AAA. Professor Bermann is the author or co-author of several books and numerous professional articles on international arbitration topics. He received his B.A. from Yale and his J.D. from Yale Law School.

William H. Crosby, Jr. is Vice President, Associate General Counsel with Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc., based in New York and is responsible for overseeing all litigation and arbitration matters for the firm’s 50,000 employees worldwide. He is a member of the AAA-ICDR Counsel and serves on its Arbitration Committee and is a Board Member of the LGBT Bar Association of Greater New York. Mr. Crosby received his B.A. from Yale and his J.D. from Stanford Law School. 

Grant Hanessian is based in New York and was a partner at Baker McKenzie. He has served as a member of the ICC Court of Arbitration and as Chair of the U.S. Council for International Business, and as a member of the ICC’s Commission on Arbitration. Mr. Hanessian is also an Adjunct Professor at Fordham Law School where he teaches international commercial arbitration courses. He received his B.A. from the University of Pennsylvania, his J.D. from New York University School of Law, and his LLM from Columbia School of Law. 

Sandra A. Jeskie is a partner with Duane Morris servicing the firm’s Los Angeles, San Diego, and Philadelphia offices. She has served as Chair of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, North America, is on the Executive Committee of the Board of the Silicon Valley Arbitration and Mediation Center, and is a past President of the International Technology Law Association (ITechLaw). Ms. Jeskie has also served as a special master in federal and state court cases. She received her B.A. and M.B.A. from La Salle University and her J.D. from Temple University Beasley School of Law.

Grant L. Kim is the managing partner of the San Francisco office of LimNexus. He is a Fellow with the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators and a former Chair of its Northern California Chapter. Mr. Kim has also served as a Director with the Silicon Valley Arbitration and Mediation Center, a director of the Council of Korean Americans, and as co-founder and former President of the Korean American Bar Association of Northern California. He received his B.A. from Pomona College and his J.D. from the University of California’s Hastings College of Law.

Gordon “Skip” Netzorg is a partner in the office of Sherman & Howard in Denver, Colorado. He is the former Colorado State Chair of the American College of Trial Lawyers and President of Colorado’s Trial Lawyers Association. He was also a member of the Institute for the Advancement of the American Legal System/American College of Trial Lawyers’ Joint Task Force on Discovery. Mr. Netzorg is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania and received his J.D. from Syracuse University College of Law.

Merriann M. Panarella is a former litigation partner in the Boston office of WilmerHale LLP. She is a Fellow with the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators and a member of the Silicon Valley and Arbitration Center’s Tech List. She is the co-author of the chapter entitled “Disclosure and Admission of Evidence in the International Arbitration of Intellectual Property Disputes” in The Arbitration of International Intellectual Property Disputes (2d Ed.), edited by Thomas D. Halket. Ms. Panerella clerked for the Honorable W. Arthur Garrity, Jr., of the U.S. District of Massachusetts, and received her B.A. from Wellesley College and her J.D. from the University of Virginia.

Lawrence S. Schaner is a former partner with Jenner & Block LLP in Chicago where he co-founded and co-chaired the firm’s international arbitration practice. He is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, a member of the ICC’s U.S. Nominating Committee, and an adjunct professor at Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law. Mr. Schaner is a co-editor of International Arbitration in the United States. He is a graduate of Duke University and received his J.D. from Stanford Law School.

Gregory B. Wood is a former partner at Fulbright & Jaworski, Patent Counsel at Hughes Aircraft, and General Counsel for AuriQ Systems, Inc. Before becoming a lawyer, Mr. Wood worked as a professional control systems engineer for Hughes Aircraft. He has served on working groups for the Sedona Conference and as an adjunct professor at Southwestern Law School, Loyola Law School, and Masters College. He received his B.S. in electronic engineering from UCLA, his M.S. in control systems engineering from UCLA, and his J.D. from the University of La Verne College of Law.

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